BMW and Toyota tighten hydrogen ties

BMW and Toyota are reportedly ‘upgrading’ their hydrogen fuel cell partnership as the duo works to accelerate its range of next-generation, environmentally friendlier models amid slowing growth in demand for battery electric vehicles.

According to Nikkei Asia, BMW aims to begin mass production of a hydrogen fuel cell electric vehicle (FCEV) “within a few years”, and potentially the iX5 FCEV driven by GoAuto in Australia last month.

The report says the BMW and Toyota are set to sign a memorandum of understanding for the heightened partnership as early as next week, with an official announcement to be made on September 5.

The two companies have been collaborating on FCEV technology since June 2012. Until now, Toyota’s role in the partnerships was limited to supplying only a limited number of components, sourced predominantly from its Mirai hydrogen FCEV sedan.

GoAuto understands that under the upgraded partnership, Toyota will supply BMW with more key components for vehicles, including hydrogen tanks and related FCEV systems with which BMW will pair its own EV technology, such as drive systems and motors.

BMW has developed a concept X5 SUV that operates on fuel cell technology sourced from Toyota’s Mirai. The model boasts a cruising range of over 500km and may be refilled in less than five minutes.

The collaboration with Toyota will allow BMW to reduce development and production costs, bringing the vehicle to market at much the same price point as a battery electric equivalent.

Toyota launched its Mirai hydrogen FCEV sedan in 2014, but the vehicle has been slow to catch on with consumers largely due to the scarcity of refuelling infrastructure.

Nikkei Asia reports that a resurgence in interest in hydrogen FCEV technology is now underway, thanks in part to dwindling interest in battery electric models. However, battery electric vehicle owners face only a fraction of the issue as hydrogen FCEV owners, namely the sparsity and reliability of a recharging network.

According to the European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association, there are only 270 hydrogen refuelling stations in the whole of Europe (far more than Australia’s two), far fewer than the 632,000 public EV charging stations in the European Union (and 2400 in Australia) as of the end of 2023.